I wonder if the author has done any research on the Elliston Massacres where dozens or even hundreds of Aboriginal men, women and children were herded over the cliffs and into the sea. Elliston is a town on the Eyre peninsula in South Australia and even today Aboriginal people shun the area.

Thanks Eyeinthesky,

The problem with such reports is that there is no way to verify them: push people into the sea and where's the evidence ? On the other hand, if nobody is pushed into the sea, there wouldn't be any evidence either. Yes, I've heard of that rumour, and another 'herding over the cliffs' rumour relating to Moonta as well.

What is one supposed to do with the stories which depend on the 'absence of evidence' ? Of course, one should file it away in one's mind but not believe it outright: rumour and hearsay may not be the 'truth'. Often in the nineteenth century, especially amongst hicks and bar-flies, I suspect that highly inflated stories and rumours got bandied about. It reminds me of a story in a book by the great Ruth Park, dealing with the early history of her native New Zealand, in which an old Maori chief smacks his lips at the memory of eating a missionary - the problem, Park pointed out, was that no missionary had every been killed and eaten in New Zealand.

What counts as evidence ? A passionate and indignant story ? No, all it may be is a passionate and indignant story, without a shred of truth to it. Unless a story can be checked in some way, and backed up by some concrete evidence, by forensic archaeologists if necessary, I wouldn't give it the time of day. Life's too short.

Cheers,

Joe

Dear Joe Lane, It is so refreshing to hear an opinion of a positive nature on aboriginal affairs. You strike me as a well balanced sort of bloke who has always made his own way in his life.

eyeinthesky,
I must admit I know nothing of the massacre you refer to. I will look it up of course. This actually reminds of an incident I experienced first hand about 20 years ago.
A half-caste aboriginal from Central Australia was speaking to some white bureaucrats & a handful of Islanders about cultural awareness on the Qld islands. Even the islanders queried his suitability. Then, an island elder gave a lecture on local history. In one part this elder told of magistrate Frank Jardine having shot 3000 islanders on Muralug island as retalliation to the killing of a boat crew of Beche-de-mer fishers.. Now, the interesting part was that 20 years earlier the castaway Barbara Thompson who lived with the Murarlug tribe for five years, told her rescuers that she counted 49 people in that tribe. The tribe must have gone into procreation overdrive after Barbara's rescue to get to 3000.
The other interesting part is that the magistrate replacing Jardine wrote of visiting the scene & it was only for want of a proper boat & a sufficient number of Police that he didn't punish the treacherous perpetrators as had been the intention of Mr Jardine had he remained here. Jardine was on leave for 18 months at that time when 3000 tribal people were supposedly shot. a little re-thinking of history would go well on this particular subject.

Thanks, JBowyer, you're far too kind.

I don't know, Individual, how do you look up something for which there is no evidence ?

Horror stories have been around as long as there have been newspapers in Australia. Criticising governments has been part of their bread and butter. My mum used to tell me about a supposed massacre in Queensland when five thousand people were killed by poisoned flour. It's taken me fifty years to say to myself, wait a minute, there probably has never been a time when five thousand people all in the one place. And what would the pastoralist supposedly involved have done with the five thousand bodies ? Where are they ? Did he burn them all, at a ton of wood per person ? How long would that have taken ? And would it all have been done without laving a trace ?

One indicative incident in the Protector's letters comes to mind: men from the Lake Hope region near Cooper's Creek, used to come down to the Flinders Ranges for ochre, raiding shepherds' huts as they went, up and down. The Protector's suggestion ? Send two tons of ochre a year up to Lake Hope. Those journeys may have had other purposes, strengthening social relations between groups, arranging marriage partners, but that's for another researcher to explore.

Most universities are in the major cities, where archives tend to be kept. it would be great if every student enrolling in a course in Aboriginal History was required to find and analyse just one major document from those archives. At that rate, in barely one or two hundred years, much of the store of documents could be gone over and students could get a feel for the real day-to-day issues of the time. Perhaps the academics involved could give it a go as well, it would be a novel experience for most of them.

Cheers,

Joe
www.firstsources.info

how do you look up something for which there is no evidence ?
Loudmouth,
Academic historians don't seem to have a problem there ?